£8.5m ‘deal done’, medical being prepared, hijack on – The latest on every Leeds United transfer story
The latest on every transfer story involving Leeds United this summer including updates on Lucas Perri, Nico Elvedi and Igor Paixao.
Leeds United have just over two weeks to conclude their transfer business and it feels like there is still plenty to do. A combined £74.1million has been spent on three arrivals Harry Wilson, Tarik Muharemovic and James Trafford, all of which upgrade Daniel Farke’s starting-XI.
But attacking depth is still lacking with Leeds known to want difference-making quality on the left and competition for Dominic Calvert-Lewin upfront. Natural left-sided defensive cover is also needed while a potential squad exit could make central centre-back a position that needs reinforcing.
Leeds could do with a back-up to first-choice goalkeeper James Trafford as well, with a lot to do inside the next fortnight or so. With all of that in mind, the YEP has the latest on every major transfer story involving the Whites so far this summer.
1. Karl Darlow
The experienced goalkeeper left Leeds as a free agent to join rivals Manchester United. The YEP understands a new deal was on offer at Elland Road but plans to sign a new goalkeeper meant he couldn’t be guaranteed the No.1 spot. | Getty Images
2. Lucas Perri
The Brazilian has been expected to join Torino on loan for a few weeks now but there’s been no recent progress. Reports have since suggested Marseille could swoop in to hijack the move. Leeds do still need to get a back-up goalkeeper through the door. | Steve Bardens/Getty Images
3. Illan Meslier
Leeds confirmed Meslier’s exit following the expiration of his contract. The Frenchman has since joined Premier League champions Arsenal, where at present he will be third choice. | Jonathan Gawthorpe
4. Sebastiaan Bornauw
Reports from Germany have touted Bornauw for a Bundesliga return all summer and Hamburg now appear to be in pole position. The YEP understands a loan with an option is possible, with Farke suggesting recently the Belgian would like to leave for more regular football elsewhere. | Alex Pantling/Getty Images
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5. Pascal Struijk
The Dutchman called time on an eight-and-a-half year spell at Elland Road, joining Brighton in a deal the YEP understands is worth £18m plus £2m add-ons. Leeds also inserted a sell-on clause into the terms. | AFP via Getty Images
6. Isaac Schmidt
Schmidt joined Swiss side BSC Young Boys last month for a fee the YEP understands to have been around £2m. Leeds have essentially ensured they didn’t lose any book value on the full-back. | Getty Images
Hinshelwood goal gives Brighton and Hove Albion victory over Bologna
The Seagulls can fly to Norway for their Europa Conference League play-off against Tromso on the back of two wins out of two in friendlies against serious Italian opposition.
The only goal of the game this afternoon (Saturday 15 August) came from Jack Hinshelwood who brought even more sunshine to the Amex on another scorcher of a day.
Brighton and Hove Albion head coach Fabian Hürzeler made only one change to the side that started the 3-0 win over AS Roma last Saturday, with Maxim De Cuyper replacing the injured Yankuba Minteh.
The scoreline could easily have been repeated, with the better chances coming in a fairly low-key first half – but plenty of press after the break.
Early on, Georginio Rutter stung Lukasz Skorupski’s palms and the Roma keeper cleared with his fists when Mats Wieffer met De Cuyper’s corner with an unmarked header at the far post.
The best chance before the break came when Olivier Boscagli chipped a lovely pass to Hinshelwood who should have scored but his volley was parried away by Skorupski.
Bart Verbruggen made his only save of note early in the second half from Nicolo Cambiaghi’s volley before Albion broke the deadlock in the 58th minute.
Rutter deserves praise for a barnstorming run to the line. Bologna cleared his ball across the face of goal to Wieffer on the edge of the box and his goalbound shot was flicked home by Hinshelwood.
The midfielder could have grabbed a second but blazed over and by then Hürzeler had rung the changes.
One of the substitutes, Babis Kostoulas, forced a good save from Skorupski in the closing stages as Albion finished their pre-season fixtures with a 100 per cent record.
Hürzeler praised Hinshelwood, saying: “Overall, I’ve been impressed with Jack since the second part of last season.
“He’s developing as a player but also as a personality. He’s growing into a leadership role and stepping up, even though he’s quite young. That’s exactly what we need right now.
“On the pitch, he always creates danger because he’s so active. He follows the game. He’s very present in the opponents’ box. He defends well and he has a great work rate.
“That’s why, both on and off the pitch, I’m really happy with him.”
The head coach added: “Today we played a good game. We controlled the game. We could have scored more goals and we kept a clean sheet.
“The boys, especially in the first half, felt a little bit tired. I think they felt the long pre-season and the tough week we had.
“But, overall, it was a good pre-season and a good end of the pre-season today. And, now the real season starts, and it’s up to us to show what we did in pre-season in the serious games.”
And that starts with the trip to Tromso, in the Arctic Circle, on Thursday (20 August) after the Norwegians beat Romanian side CFR Cluj 2-1 two days ago to win 7-1 on aggregate.
The winner of the two-leg tie will go through to the group stage of the competition.
Albion: Verbruggen, Wieffer (Costinha 77), Boscagli (Dunk 65), Vuskovic (Svoboda 65), Kadioglu (Igor 77), Ayari, Gross, De Cuyper (Osman 65), Gomez (Yohanna 65), Hinshelwood (Yalcouye 65), Georginio (Kostoulas 73).
Unused subs: Cashin, Cozier-Duberry, Steele, O’Mahony, Tasker